On the surface rocks appear boring, especially when a college geology class with lab is required.
My journey taught me otherwise.
Junior Mineral Lab
While growing up family members would gift me craft kits for Christmas, and sometimes they’d gift me science labs.
One of those was a mineral collection, which gave me a huge introduction to a mysterious world seemingly hidden from me.
The streak plate, especially, was perplexing. (click on any of the photos to see more of the story in my Flickr set)
Geology 101 at SWT
All made more sense when I studied geology in college.
At first, I thought the class would be completely boring. After all, Central/Southern Texas rocks were a dull ecru/tan/brown.
Interestingly my classes, held at Southwest Texas State University (the name at the time) were amazing.
Our campus was located on Chautauqua Hill, the first hill of the Texas Hill Country in San Marcos, Texas.
Across the way was I-35, which was the dividing line between the Hill Country to the west and the Blackland Prairie to the east.
In town were two main tourist attractions my family and I had visited in earlier years. The very reason for the popularity of so many sites in the area became obvious after I studied geology.
Balcones Fault Line
Towards the south was Wonder World Cave, where one can see the Balcones Fault Line, along which I-35 was routed.
That fault line runs north to Austin, and south to San Antonio…which explains the name of Balcones Heights in San Antonio which has an amazing view of the city.
In Austin is a park I had visited on a school field trip years before, Barton Springs. The springs naturally bubble up from the ground, which the Spaniards discovered in the 18th century.
Artesian Wells
In fact, as the Spaniards traveled from Mexico City to East Texas they found numerous artesian wells in central Texas, amazingly along this line now known as the Balcones Fault Zone.
Also known as the Artesian Zone, this area has pools of water bubbling out of the ground in Austin, San Marcos, New Braunfels, and San Antonio that are now famous recreation spots that are highly popular today, where the crystal clear water is a constant 68 to 72 degrees year round.
Austin Artesian Wells
In Austin the popular Barton Springs bubble up from the aquifer, forming Barton Creek which empties into the Colorado River. Rare fauna in the area are two types of salamanders, one of which is blind. About a mile upstream from the area is a natural swimming hole that is also spring fed.
San Marcos Artesian Wells
Thirty miles south reveals another popular artesian well destination in San Marcos next to SWT, known as Aquarena Springs. A popular amusement park built around water, mermaids, and swimming pigs brought crowds to enjoy the beautiful clear water.
Boat tours can be taken to observe the springs bubbling from under the ground. The 1920’s hotel lies across Spring Lake, that is formed by the springs.
When I was in college, water from Spring Lake tumbled down falls into the San Marcos River, a famous hamburger hangout called Pepper at the Falls.
New Braunfels Artesian Wells
Twenty miles south from there is New Braunfels, where the lovely park of Landa Park is located: picnics, swimming, paddle boats, and train ride.
Also at Landa Park is the beginning of the Comal River, at the site of the bubbling springs from the aquifer.
San Antonio Artesian Wells
Thirty miles south of there is the site of the bubbling springs of the San Antonio Springs, creating the San Antonio River…resulting in the beautifully unique River Walk.
And all along these sites on I-35, one can see the Hill Country to the west and the Blackland Prairie to the east.
Edwards Aquifer
This area forms the Edwards Aquifer, from which the residents from Austin to San Antonio obtains their water supply.
That aquifer is made possible by the differences between 2 apparently boring rocks that predominate the area, called limestone.
Some of the limestone is solid, while other limestone has numerous holes. The areas where the limestone has holes, is where rainfall filters through to the aquifer.
The aquifer is bounded by the solid limestone.
This bounded area creates a difference in pressure, which forms artesian springs which allowed the Spaniards to first find the springs, which sprung 50 feet into the air.
Over the years water conservationists capped the springs, one of which could be seen in the King William District along the San Antonio River, at the Steves Homestead. Once a public site one could tour, the gorgeous mansion is now a private home. Another was on our campus near our library, Theater Arts building, and San Marcos River.
SWT Geology Field Trips
In class we learned how to actually use those streak plates (in my first photo) to help us identify minerals, which comprise rocks. We also learned the basic types of rocks (igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary) and their types and features. And the general processes of volcanoes and earthquakes.
Then that was applied in our field trips to see examples out and about that we never realized the full story on, until our excursions.
Then after my college years, my on going studies unlocked the rich geologic history of our area.
Thus the best part of the labs for my geology class involved us piling into the SWT van so our professor could take us on field trips.
We were told to reserve our Tuesday afternoon 3 hour labs for journeys out and about, and to also reserve one Saturday in April for a full day field trip in the Hill Country.
Tuesday Afternoon Lab Field Trips
We were taken to a volcano south of Austin, Pilot Knob, where we collected basalt, a black igneous rock with green crystals called olivine. At last we were looking at the real thing in nature, instead of just in a book or as a lab sample.
After that we drove throughout Austin to see various geological issues affected residential buildings on the Balcones Fault Line.
I don’t have any other photos of my Tuesday labs, wish I did, but I do recall a few other trips to SWT properties in the Hill Country, where we hiked through amazing geological formations, details of which are now obscure to me, but picture images in my head are pretty amazing…of fern growing alongside a cliff and river, and huge holes formed by eddies in a river called something…maybe Old Mans Bathtub???
One of our other Tuesday labs involved a quick walk from our classroom on Chautauqua Hill towards Spring Lake of Aquarena Springs. Behind the lake was a road cut where we could easily find fossils. There were a million of them! Who knew? I jog back here all the time but had no idea of the fascination near my feet.
Saturday Field Trip
This was an amazing day.
We left campus in the morning to drive to the LBJ Ranch in Stonewall, near which we began our geology tour. That took us to Fredericksburg, Cross Mountain, Balanced Rock, Enchanted Rock, and Llano.
My favorite was the llanite we collected in Llano, a unique rock found only in that area.
In Llano we had the most amazing Texas BBQ for lunch.
Then we went on to Lake LBJ in Marble Falls.
Granite that I collected near Lake LBJ was used to build the Texas State Capitol in Austin, which my kids and I studied more thoroughly in the history unit I put together.
From XIT Ranch to Lake LBJ to Austin, our state capitol building was born, even bigger than the US Capitol in Washington DC.
Nature Study Class
Also that semester I took Nature Study, which was designed for elementary majors. We were also told to set aside a day each week for lab field trips, and a Saturday in April for a full day field trip, which sometimes overlapped but completely complimented my geology field trips.
Our focus was on the addition of flora and fauna to geology and other elements of nature, including weather.
Some of the repeat visits from the weekend before was to Cross Mountain, Balanced Rock, and Enchanted Rock.
Balanced Rock Explosion
Horrified, a few days after our April field trips we learned that Balanced Rock in Fredericksburg which we had just visited had been blown up with TNT.
Of all the places I had visited as an SWT student, that is the only location I wasn’t able to take my kids when we were homeschooling.
San Marcos Field Trip Class Assignment
Each of our field trips, our professor explained, were published through University of Texas. We were given copies to follow as we drove along, so that we knew exactly where to stop by paying attention to mileage markers. I was rather stoked to sit in the front seat on the Saturday field trip, which meant I got to be her navigator, reading off how many miles to the next stop which she then monitored on her gauge.
With those models in place, we were instructed to design our own field trip for our campus location.
Taking a walk from one end of our large campus to the other, I found a lot of stuff to include: a small cave, fossils, and of course Chautauqua Hill and Spring Lake.
Texas History
From geology springs history! I have found this to be true everywhere I turn. The Spaniards who found these gushing artesian wells established missions at many of the sites of these springs.
On our homeschool field trips we visited one in Landa Park, one in Aquarena Springs, and five in San Antonio.
To irrigate their fields the Indians at the missions built acequias to route water from the river to the missions.
Introducing my kids to geology
These excursions I replicated to a smaller degree with my kids, which formed a fascination that joined mine in discovering geology wherever we go, like New Mexico, Colorado, and Virginia.
Young Earth Model
Although in college I learned Old Earth Theory, that never made sense to me. Over time I came to learn Young Earth Theory which is really the only theory that has any substantiation with smaller proof text models, as in Mount St. Helens. More on that in further posts.
After all these local excursions, we added on more when we visited New Mexico, Colorado, and Virginia. Stay tuned for those posts.
Epilogue 2024
Last year I made a return trip to Texas to take better photos of many of these locals. Stay tuned for that.
Incidentally my son and his new wife were also visiting Texas. Before that trip my son had mentioned to her my geology experience, and how I used to collect rocks and fossils. She was amazed and wanted to know all about that. She asked extensive questions.
Then last autumn they found a day to go to Cross Mountain.
I flew back home to Virginia before they did. Elated they reported back to me that simply based on my verbal descriptions, they found a few rocks and fossils at Cross Mountain.
When they came to visit me at my home, they brought their specimens, which I instantly recognized, as they are so unique! These are my old samples, from college, which theirs matched.
And so the tradition continues, because I shared with my kids the lessons I experienced with wonder and amazement in college.
